INVESTIGATION: Digging into taxpayer money spent on free weekly fitness event

CORPUS CHRISTI, Tx — A free weekly fitness event launched by the City of Corpus Christi during the height of COVID-19 was designed to get people out of their homes and get moving.

While that event is free to attend, it comes at a cost to taxpayers.

Since the inception of Safe Fun-Fit over $200,000 has been paid to one local business to run these events.

6 Investigates began digging into how the city was spending taxpayer money earlier this year after city employees reached out to our team.

Though Safe Fun-Fit is marketed as a city event, most related payments go to Victor Betancourt, who operates V-Fit Training Center, an athletic training center located on South Staples St.

Texas Secretary of State records show that Betancourt registered multiple companies with variations of this name. Some of these companies were dissolved, and some were forfeited. The most recent, FitCityCC LLC, was registered with the state in May 2020 and closed by the state in July last year.

6 Investigates requested all contracts between the City of Corpus Christi and V-Fit through a public information request in July. A specialist contract, which expired in August 2020, was provided.

KRIS 6 News also learned that V-Fit has a separate contract to host similar events with the Corpus Christi-Nueces County Public Health Department.

That contract lists the vendor as Victor Betancourt and cites V Fit Productions, a sole proprietorship filed with Nueces County in 2011, which expired in 2021.

The same public information request yielded hundreds of pages of invoices between the city and V-Fit, with Victor Betancourt listed as the vendor on all of them.

Among the recurring payments, a “Consulting and Management” fee appears most consistently. A weekly fee of $480 was paid even when classes were canceled. Of the more than 40 classes canceled over the past four years, 6 Investigates found that only four did not have a corresponding fee payment.

Adam Beam

When we requested a list of canceled classes, the city provided only six. The remaining canceled classes were identified through social media posts and press releases.

Other costs include $200 per month for social media, $50 per session/class for instructors, and $50 per session for DJs. A separate public information request to the Corpus Christi Parks and Recreation Department revealed that V-Fit subcontracts services like these.

According to Parks and Recreation, V-Fit keeps attendance and registration records for the event.

In that July request, 6 Investigates asked for documents detailing attendance numbers for Safe Fun-Fit. We received two undated attendance sheets and a spreadsheet showing over 16,000 attendees from 2020 to August of this year. The origins of these figures are unknown.

The spreadsheet indicates that most participants attend events hosted by the city but managed and run by V-Fit. Of the many events they have hosted, Endurance Fest is perhaps the largest.

City of Corpus Christi

Endurance Fest is a three-day event that began in 2023 to mark Safe Fun-Fit’s three year anniversary. At the time the city lauded Safe Fun-Fit as one of the state’s longest-running free fitness activities.

“This is the longest-running fitness activity free to a community that any Texas city is doing, and we should be proud of that,” City Manager Peter Zanoni said at a 2023 press conference.

At the same event, Zanoni described Betancourt as “the brainchild behind this.”

For the past two Endurance Fests, Betancourt has received a total of $17,412 in event management fees, in addition to the regular consulting and management fees. Betancourt was also paid to provide timing services for this event and reimbursed for timing chips.

Endurance Fest attracts donors, including Valero, AEP Texas, and State Rep. Todd Hunter. For example, Valero donated $10,000 to sponsor this year’s event. According to a Valero representative, the donation was made to V-Fit, not the city.

Unlike Safe Fun-Fit, Endurance Fest charges participants fees ranging from $30 for a 5K run to $65 for a 40-mile bike tour with Zanoni. These fees are non-refundable and paid to V-Fit, not the city.

The FAQ section of the event’s website notes that the event benefits three nonprofits. During the 2024 press conference, Betancourt said a “portion of the proceeds” would “help a few organizations, nonprofits.” The beneficiaries listed are Team Life Cyclers, South Texas Rollers, and Kids Get Fit.

6 Investigates reached out to all three.

Team Life Cyclers, a cycling group, is not a nonprofit and has not received any donation from Endurance Fest, according to a group organizer.

South Texas Rollers, a running club, became a 501(c)(3) in 2023, the same year they were announced as a beneficiary of Endurance Fest. The event was intended to raise funds for its Scholarship Foundation. So far, they have received $5,500, though no scholarships have been awarded. According to one of the group’s leaders, they plan to “raise more funds” before awarding scholarships.

Adam Beam

Kids Get Fit, a nonprofit promoting healthy lifestyles for children and families, has received a total of $9,000 from the event.

Kids Get Fit shares an address with V-Fit, and Betancourt serves as its president. 6 Investigates requested the organization’s 2023 tax returns on October 28. That return was filed the same day we requested it.

With taxpayer money being spent and multiple parties involved, 6 Investigates attempted to speak with Betancourt, Zanoni, Director of Public Health Dr. Fauzia Khan, and Parks and Recreation Director Robert Dodd.

Betancourt did not respond to our multiple requests for an interview. 6 Investigates received the following statement on behalf of the city:

That statement does not address why the city does not maintain attendance records, nor does it address Zanoni’s apparent personal relationship with Betancourt.

Photos posted to social media include the pair at local restaurants and show Betancourt was in attendance at Zanoni’s son’s wedding.

That statement also does not address whether it is common for a private business to receive taxpayer money to run events that allow those businesses to generate revenue for those companies.

Get more 6 Investigates here.